Hi Friends! So I got to thinking. So many of you are DIYers, and I am sure none of you can imagine from the photos I post now how bad this house really was. Sooo I thought I’d finally break out those ugly before photos to give you all hope and inspiration in your projects, as you all have inspired me!

Where to begin?! This is the old dining room that is now the mudroom. The window to the left was removed and a door was put in.

This is that “debate” I always talk about. I wanted the door to be moved to here soooooo badly. But this would cost much more work for the good ole’ hubby. But of course I won ;-P, but he told me “It was for the structural integrity of the home, not for you.” Whatever Doug, just move that damn door!

Here is my brother doing a little sanding on the mudroom bench for us 🙂

Here is the mudroom months and months later. About eight months later to be exact! This is the little bench I just posted on my Instagram a few days ago (And yes this room is now white…..!

Walk a little farther in and here is the kitchen. We still have these old cabinets, but I refinished them to take away the yellow. We added a cheap backsplash and new trim to buy us a few years, but times up! I am ready to move on a rip it out! But if you ask the hubby he would have been perfectly content with it the way it was. Men right?! Jk I love him 😉 Oh and you can see from the dishes on the counter I wasn’t ready for this demo. We were eating dinner and I was talking about wanting to expose the chimney behind this cupboard. And Doug being the spontaneous man he is.. got up and started ripping into it! My dad got work and came over to see. And here it began!

And I almost didn’t put this one in here. But here I am! I always say we, but really mean Doug 90%, me 10%. But I tried hard to help any way I could.

Another photo of this same wall with the hidden chimney, just the other side of the wall. And again this proves we had no plan and just went for it one day as I was NOT prepared and still had furniture here!

The laundry room was right here in the kitchen beside the chimney!

Okay where is this I am sure you are thinking. Well right about where the photo was taken in the last picture was this wall and hallway! Now look what we (my dad and Doug) did to this hallway!

That brown horizontal paint line right where Doug is working were the old stairs.

This shows you the ugly old stairs in the back of the house through the hallway of horrors as I called it! And that hideous green carpet that was everrryyywhereee! All the floors you see in my posts currently were hidden under here!

BOOM. The stairs were put here. This is the original place of their location back in 1861 when the house was built! We found an old sign and newspaper dated that right here in this wall! The history here still continues to blow my mind!

These are the stairs a little more finished months and months later. After we finished the upstairs so we actually had a place to retreat from the mess. But don’t worry, the dust and dirt made its way upstairs as well. There was no safe zone as I called it for months! The only thing that stayed was a bed. The TV, the couch, a dining table, everything was gone for months and months. The hardest part of this was when you are dog tired and wanted to relax there was no place to go or retreat. Constant chaos. If you are going through this now or are about to endeavor such things. Please remember to have patiences and it will be all worth it in the end. I promise. No matter the hardships that must be overcome to get there.

Here is the upstairs after a bit of demo. What didn’t get touched in this house right?!

The hubby is looking a little rough as the months went on. Such little sleep working full time Monday thru Friday. He would come home, change his boots and get right to work for hours until he couldn’t anymore. Than he would get up at 5 am and do it all over again.

But this photo shows the hidden original ceilings. His grandparents dropped this ceiling sometime in the 60’s or 70’s with a remodel. But if you look close, there was beautiful gold wallpaper on those original 10 foot ceilings! Amazing uncovering the beauty of this original home.

And I am sure you have noticed the only thing untouched is that kitchen. And I can not wait to dive in and utilize the tall ceilings. These ugly old 80s cabinet have to go. Hello farmhouse style tall glass uppers with inset doors (all the heart eyes here).

Fast forward a few months… Drywall was delivered.

Then a few more..

The old stove was removed and we now have that cream stove we bought on mega clearance as that color was discontinued, and it was a floor model!

A few friends helping with the drywall upstairs. Thanks guys!

My dad helping with tiling the tub. I desperately wanted a claw foot tub. Like SOOOO bad. I still regret not winning that battle as he refused to shower in a claw foot tub. Marriage is about compromise right?! Ugh ;-P

This is our bedroom upstairs. And the first room that got that farmhouse trim I had always dreamed about!

I wanted so badly to keep the original flooring upstairs, but he had to remove it to strengthen the floor joists. Plus so much was missing because the staircase had been moved three times in this home! So here is the laminate flooring we went with, and help from a good friend Josh Ford 🙂

Doug tried his hand at drywall finishing. Lets just say hardest. job. ever! But then came paint!

We did this all our own, with the of help from family and friends. I want to say a HUGE thank you to all that helped us and for Doug’s brother Bob who did our electrical. We love you Bob!

And I still can’t believe the end result and am SO proud to call this our home.

Thank you all for stopping by! This may be my longest post ever, but trying to put together a year of work into one post was hard! I hope this gives you all hope, motivation, and inspiration in all your endeavors. Happy Thanksgiving!!

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I wanted to quick write a little blog about my new stroller from Mutsy. It is the Igo Farmer in Earth color. Can I say, O.M.G. Amazing. When I opened the box, I was blown away. As I was putting it together (let me say that was SO easy too) I wanted to call my best friend or my mom to brag about it. Please tell me you do that too?!

I titled this blog “The Space Shuttle,” because immediately when the husband came home he said, “When did you get that cool space shuttle?!” Men. (Insert eye rolling emoji here).

But anyways, I wanted to tell you a few features I LOVE. For one, it truly is so easy to put together, and pack away. I watched the fun video on their website with the fun music as she clicked away at all it’s features. (Click here for video) I thought at the time, no way it will be that easy (they never are). And well it was. I found myself extending the handle just to hear it click. 😉 Also with this stroller we have another attachment for a seat for Auburn. I don’t have it photographed just yet as we had too much fun with its other features you’ll see down below. But the back reclines and can be positioned in two directions! Either towards you or away from you. And I love that it can recline down to a sleeping position because naps are always needed 😉

Also, it folds up all SO easy and the material is so soft. Of course Woodrow spit up the minute I laid him down in it, but I the mattress pad comes right out, and I was able to wash it.

Another wonderful detail the husband brought up are its tires. They are big enough to not bring you to a dead stop when you walk in the grass, but small enough to be compact for carrying and in the car. And secondly, they don’t need air! (All the praise hands emoji here!) I swear every time I went to use our previous stroller it allllwwayysss had a flat.

And lastly, I noticed someone asked if Mutsy would be coming out with a double stroller? Well, friends, their stroller has a step-up board (BOOM). I got one for Auburn, and he constantly asks, “Go ride?!” He is at that age where he wants in and out, so this way he can hop on or walk as he pleases 🙂

We went to my dads farm last night and tried it out in the grass. Not as easy to push of course, but still doable! Now Auburn, get some corn and go feed those cows! They need bedding too, so go grab a pitch fork too!

Thank you all for stopping by and hoping you have a wonderful day!

***Please note this post is not sponsored, and all thoughts are my own 🙂

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I wanted to share with you a few favorites of our family photos taken by Amy Carroll 🙂

Here is our sweet boy Woodrow, and as Auburn calls him baby Gus. This basket I just adore! So many have asked about it and here is the link!

And this has been the morning routine since he came home. Auburn has become so cooperative letting me change his diaper and getting dressed so he can hold baby Gus. He asks, “Baby Gus, couch?” Because the couch is where we let him hold him 🙂

I could lay here all day and just stare into his beautiful steel colored eyes.

Gosh seeing the love of my life hold him….. my heart is still melting..

Oh Wyatt you we love you too.

Such a beautiful morning.

#reallife! Bahahahaha!!!!

And just like that, we were done. Auburn was over it 😉

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Today I wanted to show a little before and after of our new outdoor patio!

We had once stacked wood on the back of this garage. And then when the wood was gone, it was just gross. I power washed this the day before I had baby Ford number 2… Maybe this put me into labor?! Either way, I am soo glad I cleaned it up. I had a vision and can’t wait to show you!

What a gross site right? (Except for Auburn, bottom left corner..!) I am not sure what they had in mind with this concrete slab behind the garage back in the day, but I had no idea what to do here for the past few years. Then it finally hit me! After this hot summer, I found this is the best place to be!

This faces the West and has plenty of shade, and I am so excited to sit here this fall and watch the sunset with our new family of four! 🙂 Next spring, the hubby talks about some sort of pergola or roof extended here. And I picture the boys playing under the tree next to us in a sand box with their Tonka toys. #lifeisgood.

You think anyone will play checkers with me??! I lovvveeee board games!

This patio set is from Walker Edison Furniture. I loved all the seating it provides and has everyone facing one of my favorite views of my great grandfathers barn in the distance. I must say, I was impressed when this set arrived. The instructions were wonderful, and the sectional has an aluminum frame that is powder coated. The instructions were perfect, and I even set it up just one week after having a baby. BOOM.

This grill is called a Kamado Joe. A friend from work told me about this when I had been looking for one for a Fathers Day gift for the hubby. What I loved about this, is its outstanding quality. I wanted something that would last and that he would enjoy using. If you don’t like your grill, the chances are you won’t use it. As soon at we got this, the hubby and I started dreaming up cook outs and reasons to have friends and family over! And fall is the perfect time for a last hooray to enjoy the most beautiful time of year here in Michigan.

With a roof on here someday, I envision stringing a set of lights above here and having it glow at night. Gosh I sure can dream!

Well, thank you all for stopping by! I sure appreciate each and every one of you, and hope I sparked some sort of inspiration!

Morgan

* This post was created in partnership with Kamado Joe. All opinions are my own 🙂

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I just wanted to jump on here and let you all know a little more about the new dining chairs. I found them on multiple sites such as Amazon, Wayfair, and at Target. Now Target was the most expensive by far, and at Amazon and Wayfair, the prices were the same. Now what I did do, is buy my first one at Target to see if I loved it because I was worried about shipping it back if I wasn’t head over heels. Well, the chair is made by Safavieh, and is called the wood arm chair in light oak teak wood. What I wanted to share with you all is that it comes unfinished. Now unfinished wood sure is beautiful, but it needs to be protected so food and dirty fingers don’t ruin it!

This is the chair how it arrived, unfinished.

And this has been my go to for finishes. It is an oil base so it WILL turn wood darker. But it also brings out the grains and therefore I love it. Some argue that an oil based finish lasts longer and is more durable. That I am unsure about, but I do love the warmth it brings.

If you look close, you can see I did not attempt to finish the wood on the seat of the chair between the wicker seat. It is made from leather and the oil base would surely stain that too.

Well thank you for stopping by, and let me know if you have any questions! Hope you have a wonderful day 🙂

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Hi friends! As my due date awaits September 21, I wanted to share a few maternity photos with Auburn. I did not have this done for our first pregnancy with him, but am soo blessed to have them now as the sweet Amy Carroll captured a beautiful morning together.

It had been weeks since this hay field was cut, and a perfect morning for a stroll.

Auburn loves to pick flowers with momma and have me smell each one..

Wyatt, our other child. He will be three years old this fall, and we couldn’t ask for a better dog. Just prior to Amy’s arrival this morning, Wyatt ate a bee just a foot from Auburn! We love you Wyatt!

Auburn’s favorite morning routine to chase chickens. This momma chicken is named Ducks. My hubby named her Ducks as each time he went to pick her up she would squat down and duck. Cute, silly chicken! She is three years old and just hatched six baby chicks. Look closely, I spy two of them!

The wood front on this garden was once an old fence. My husband saved the wood and we used it here. And that big red barn off in the distance is my father-in-laws farm. He bought that farm at 18 years old.

This hutch was my husbands grandmothers. It was in the basement when we moved in. My husband threatened to burn it countless times, for it was in terrible shape. He must have had a change in heart, and put a new top on it along with a little bit a of love. I love it in its new home as we use it daily and it sits here smiling on the porch.

He was so content playing with his loader tractor with momma and saying “dump” each time he dumped the bucket 🙂

And this headboard was my anniversary gift from my husband last year. He saved this wood from the home during the remodel and reused it here as a fun surprise.

And last, but not least, cranky Auburn 😉

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With Auburn we decided not to find out what we were having, so everything was grey grey grey. Annddd I was convinced I was having a girl.. I had a white ruffle crib skirt and a few “girlie” items that we just lived with the last year. But now with another on the way and a BOY, I am so excited to finally give this room a makeover well deserved.

I know the thing to do is a themed room, but that’s just not me. Plus we are sooo tight on space, simplicity and minimalism is a must for this mommas sanity.

I am so happy to show you all the finished look with this 8×10 room. Did I mention its tiny?!?

The hubby built these built in shelves to help utilize space. We talked back and forth about making cubbies and a rod to hang clothes, but when I think about what really needs hung for these two boys, I couldn’t think of much! I love that each boy can have a shelf with crates organizing each item. Onesies, pants, shirts, sweaters, you name it! I love that everything is easy to see and it is SO much easier to find things than shifting through drawers 🙂

Thank you hubby!

The top shelf is a little bare. But I am thinking diapers may need to go up there. Two in diapers this fall… wish us luck! The crates are from IKEA along with the curtains. The came natural and we used a Minwax stain called Early American. I am usually all about Provincial, but Doug wanted to use a penetrating stain and this is what we had on hand. I think it matches?! Just don’t look too close ;P

I just couldn’t decided to have curtains or not, but love how they soften the room, and I can hide the clutter when needed. (Which will be often when the baby arrives!)

The photos across the second shelf just came off the wall of my grandmothers basement. My grandpa framed them of photos from the West that he loved. He was a cowboy at heart and I love that I can incorporate a little of him in this room. He passed away four years ago to pancreatic cancer at 65 years to young. And not a days goes by that I still don’t miss him.

The rug you may have noticed I have in just about every room in the house. Okay not really, I only own two but I move them often for fun. I LOVE IT. I already told this story, but if you missed it- A few weeks ago when this rug first arrived, Auburn ran out of the tub streaking. He ran over here and peed on it just minutes after I laid it down to see how it fit the room. That little stinker! But no worries friends. It just ran off and I soaked it up with a towel and you’d never know! Here is a link to this cowhide from from RugsUSA.

The night stand is an old crate from a barn sale and even thought the photo makes it look like its leaning. Its not. Must be my bad photo taking 😛

The blanket is from Pendleton and even though it is throw size and not crib size, I love that we can wrap it around us on the chair reading books or lay with it on the floor as Auburn plays with his toys. Winter will be here before we know and I can promise that!

This space may seem so small, but Auburn grabs a book before bed and nestles in my lap. I’m sure he doesn’t mind 🙂

The stuffed buffalo is from my brother for Auburns first birthday. He moved away to Montana and had it shipped just in time. Auburn has only met him once or twice now being so far, but this buffalo is close to my heart.

This chair it from Modernica and I love that I can move it everywhere. I went with a white shell and walnut legs to match the wood in the room. But really you can’t go wrong with any of their stuff! And the pillow is Mudcloth. I found this cute little store on etsy called SonoranSupplyCo. These pillows are handmade from a Malian cotton fabric dyed with fermented mud. Crazy right?!

The barn my mother found at a local barn sale and I knew Auburn would love it. His favorite thing at the moment is tractors and every night he parks this one in the barn and shuts the door. I love that we keep a few things in this room for him to look forward to and wind down at night.

The light I chose is from Barn Light Electric. I have schoolhouse lights throughout the house and wanted to carry the same look, but still have something simple and trendy 🙂 This light is here.

The sacs are from Urbanasacs and made here in the USA. Plus they are made out of recyclable materials and are 100% washable! I have some I use in the kitchen and fell in love so here they are again!

Well I can’t thank you all enough for stopping by. I do hope this room brings you inspiration in either decorating or organizing friends!

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I posted a few photos on Instagram about my window dilemma and am SO happy to show you all my final decision. I had a tough choice on what to do with our farmhouse trim and low ceilings. I needed window coverage for privacy, but to let every drop of light in possible during the day!

A few friends suggested woven blinds to fix my needs and I am SO excited to show you mine! It took many days of taping samples to the windows and asking the world their opinion. Someone had suggested they loved the texture in the woven shades with the rope weave and I couldn’t agree more. I was so worried about the bamboo wood and clashing with all the wood in the home. I am so happy with the texture this blind brings and without fighting the beams, staircase and more.

Here was what I had to pick from. Oh my right?!

These were my three finalists-

I have to be honest. I didn’t realize the blind on the left was in a more expensive category, so I ruled that one out first 😉

Then there was two. I loved the colors in the wood with the blind on the right, but the texture in that middle one blew me away. If you are looking for privacy I certainly would recommend a liner. But we don’t have neighbors close and only wanted something to give us some privacy as cars drive by.

One thing quick I have to say about Select Blinds is their quality. I had purchased the ones at Home Depot and Lowe’s, but they didn’t quite work out and I am so glad they didn’t. When I opened the first blind, I could feel its weight and quality in my hands. And after the hubby installed them last night, we looked at each like “now how do these work?” We both had only ever used the type with the string, which mind you is SO dangerous with little kids! My friend just the other day told me that her toddler was playing with the cord and as the blind when up it choked her! She said she had been sitting right there thank goodness, but could you imagine if she hadn’t?! I never would have considered this until another mom brought it to my attention. Select Blinds prides themselves with safety first and all blinds being cordless. With that being said, they have a monthly contest where they give away a whole home or daycare full or cordless blinds! To enter click here. Well, back to our blinds.. 🙂 We figured them out in no time. You just lift it up and it stays just were you lift them to! No way right?! Magic!

And here they are. I chose the Premier Bamboo Shade color Kousa. This was such a hard decision because they had so many wonderful choices, but I have so happy with this choice. Oh and I think they are 40% off right now! Oh my!

I came home from work early last night and begged my husband to hang them. We are both sick with a nasty virus and I recall him saying he was sick and not me because he is “dying.” Then as him and I both coughed he said “stop copying me, you’re just pretending.” I think he suffers from whoositis. But thats just me 😉

And I love all the natural light they let in! And just one more thing. These are mudcloth pillows handmade in Utah by a talented friend. Check them out at Sonoran Supply Co.!

And just to let you know, I have an obsession with cow hide rugs! I want one for every room, but my BFF Rachel told me no. She said I need to “switch things up.” I don’t know if I’m going to listen to her….!

This is from Rugs USA and they are having 20% off sale right now! All good finds today right friends?!

Thank you all so much for stopping by! Feel free to let me know your thoughts or ask any questions! Happy Saturday!

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Hi friends! There are so many times I think, I should write about this or that, but always fall short of actually writing it! But thank you all for checking this out and I hope this helps a little 🙂

Some have said styling open shelving is so hard for them and I never really took the time to think about what I do. I just play around with decor in my own little word without much thought to what I am doing. But after hearing a few say they struggle, I am trying to think a little more about what it is I do. The first thing that comes to mind is what my mother always said when decorating. “Put like items together.” Whether they are dishes or cups and mugs, your open shelf should at the least “make sense.”

Another factor in putting like items together is color. If you have a certain color you adore or accent with in the home, put it on a shelf next to one another instead of having random pieces all over.

Another tip is balance. If you have something tall on one end, you should have something similar is height and size on the other.

And one more thing I love with open shelving is baskets. It is the best way to stay organized and keep clutter at a minimum.

Here are a few photos of my favorite open shelf to decorate. At one time I had wine glasses and other cute cups grouped together, but I learned quickly I am not the best duster and having glasses in the open = dirty cups in this house 😉

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Hello friends! I have been wanting to write a post about the small shops I adore most and I am finally getting around to it! Some with be repeats from past posts, but that is because I still adore them and want you all to notice them and help spread the word too!

First off, everyone loves jewelry right? Rebekah Gough has stole my heart over and over! They just came out with a spring collection that is so pretty! I have a few pieces from them, but just cant get enough!

Next I would like to share what I got my mother for a Mother’s Day surprise. Her grandmothers name was Folger’s and she saw this on my IG and just fell in love. I knew I would keep it in the back of my mind for this special day for her.

Antique Candle Works makes the most beautiful candles! How cute is this?! I know my mom will love this so much I wonder if she will even burn it 😉 I love the scents from Antique Candle Works and this one is a coffee smell. Her candles aren’t too over baring with scent and are just right if you ask me. I promise you too will be blown away.

Next I want to bring up a few sign makers I love.

This is from Letterfolk and I am just in love! I put this in the kitchen on the coffee bar, but have a million ideas for it! It comes with 240 letters and numbers so you can customize it however you like!

And for wood sign makers, James and Alice will forever be my love! I have more of their wood signs in the home than I want to admit, but that is because I love them all! We have a custom sign that says “Ford Farm.”

This is one of my favorites as well, well all her hers signs are my favorite 😉

One more small shop I adore is Vol25. She just came out with a spring collection and I adore all of it! Her wall hangings are nice and light, and I love the looks of them hanging from the wood hanger on her thick canvas print. I find the more I look at it, the more I notice in the details of her designs. I have her antler hanging as well and not only I love it, but my husband does too. Jess you blow us away and if I could, I would fill our home with every single one of your pieces!

And one more etsy shop I adore is Feather and Birch. She has come out with a few more designs I have my eyes on and I love all she creates!

I love the vintage feel of her old windows, but love they are new made old! And don’t weigh a ton like real old window do!

Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you too found a few things that you can’t live without! Please join me in supporting these small shops!